Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
What to expect from a zoological garden located inside a city like Λεμεσός? It is a smaller zoo, and it can be found close to the city center, directly at the sea. The zoo has been recently reconstructed and natural materials like wood, stone and rope have been used. That gives this place a wonderful atmosphere and the habitats seem to be suitable for the reduced number of species living there.
Continue reading “By the sea”
Λεμεσός is a very touristy place on Cyprus with a massive number of hotels. Especially the Russians seem to have decided that this is the place to be. The place is therefore overcrowded, and tourist guides recommend to not try to get to the city center by car – but to park out somewhere near the local zoological garden. And that is also the area where you can find the Curium palace hotel.
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If I would search for a place to create a city on Cyprus, I would probably decide for the area of Kourion, in the west of Λεμεσός: the views on the Mediterranean Sea are just breathtaking. Maybe that was also the reason why the city-state of Kourion was created here in the 13th century BCE. Today you can discover manyfold Roman traces here: beautiful mosaics, an ancient theatre und Roman baths that have been heated by fire.
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Πάνω Λεύκαρα is a picturesque village in the mountains known for the craftwork and especially lace produced here. It also offers nice views on the mountains and a beautiful ancient church, the church of the Holy Cross. Strolling through the narrow streets of this village is nice, but the marketing of the community is so strong that sometimes large crowds of tourists are dropped off by buses. Just get a coffee somewhere and let them pass by.
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Exploring Cyprus means looking at many old stones. The climate of the island and the rough, mountainous landscape made it possible. Halfway between Λάρνακα and Λεμεσός you can discover settlement structures used 8,000 years ago. In the Neolithic period people created the settlement Χοιροκoιτία with small round houses next to a river.
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Close to Λάρνακα you can find a large salt lake. During some months it is completely empty and you can walk on the salt (which was exported in former times) like in a moon-like landscape. In other times the lake is filled with water and gives a home to pink flamingos. You can walk around the lake on a nice path with many picnic areas.
Continue reading “Salt of the earth”
South of Λάρνακα you’ll find many nice hotels and apartment houses close to the sea. Especially in off-season you can get good prices here, but you’ll have a reduced amount of touristic infrastructure around you. If you’re hungry or thirsty the Cyprus Fish Tavern at Περβόλια is a traditional place that can rescue you.
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The island of Cyprus is a place that you can best explore by car. Many interesting places are far away from civilization and every city on the island can be explored within one day. Therefore, I planned a roundtrip in the Greek part of the island and booked a different hotel for each and every day. On the first day I arrived already in darkness, had to navigate while trying to stay on the left side of the road and I didn’t want to search for a car park after a long day of travelling. That’s why I booked a hotel at Λάρνακα that would normally never see me, the E-Hotel.
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When driving a car in Cyprus you can learn something about history: the island was once a colony of the British Empire! And there are even still today two British naval bases that belong to United Kingdom. For you this means mostly one thing: to drive on the left side of the road. Typically, this switch inside your head is easy, you just need to remember to give way to cars coming from the right when entering roundabouts. What always happens to me is that I try to enter the car on the front passenger side. Always good for a laugh…
Continue reading “Ghostrider”
The island of Cyprus can be accessed via three airports: Lárnaka (LCA) and Paphos (PFO) in the Greek part of the country, Ercan (ECN) in the part occupied by Turkey (open only for flights from Turkey). The airport of the capital city Lefkosía (NIC) is closed since 1974 and can only be used by UN forces. The most important hub is LCA with around five million passengers per year.
Continue reading “Lárnaka International Airport”